


spit out your teeth and kiss me softly

by honeyz (orphan_account)



Category: Gorillaz
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Roller Derby, Blood and Violence, Drug Addiction, Everyone Is Gay, Gore, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Lesbian Noodle, M/M, Roller Derby, Trans Male Character, bi russ, gay 2d, trans russ
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-06
Updated: 2018-04-06
Packaged: 2019-04-19 08:00:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14232837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/honeyz
Summary: stuart is trying to move on from his abusive ex boyfriend and his past experience with drug addiction. his solution?illegal roller derby.aka the somehow fluffy 2russ fic where 2d gets beat up in derby a lot





	spit out your teeth and kiss me softly

**Author's Note:**

> tw for blood, general violence, referenced domestic abuse, reference drug addiction, and alcoholism. also 2d loses his teeth at one point so if that freaks you out maaaybe don’t read this.

stu had originally joined the team because he had a lot of pent-up anger he needed to let out. and what better way to let out anger than throwing yourself at willing opponents and getting beat up in the process?

yes, he had originally joined to blow off some steam. but he knew now that derby wasn’t just some hobby, it was a commitment. it was a passion, really. if a not entirely law-abiding passion. 

but, hey, it’s better for him to get fit and have fun than to pop some pills and sleep around with his nasty ex boyfriend- who’s passion, for the record, happened to be throwing empty bottles at stu’s head and yelling at him.

he maybe had some issues he needed to deal with, actually.

stu was his team’s jammer, because he was fast, and he was skinny, so it didn’t take much for someone to push him across the arena. 

pool, actually. they held their games in an empty pool that used to be a part of some rec center the town decided to abandon. 

his team was actually really good. the only problem was that they didn’t work together well. they didn’t have any sort of “dynamic” or “bonding” that they did, just a lot of directions from their team leader and yelling. it seemed to work, though, because they had a four-day winning streak the night he met russ.

he’d heard things about the ghouls. for one, they were definitely better than his team (lamely named “team blue”) would ever be. two, they were SUPER intimidating. as in, one-look-can-and-will-kill-you intimidating. oh, and to top it all off, their jammer, while being much younger than stu, had been doing this for pretty much her whole life. so he was screwed.

——————————

thirty minutes later, he was pinching his nose to stop it from bleeding and trying very hard to ignore the fact that his finger may or may not be broken. he nursed a cigarette and tried to block out the screaming coming from the ghouls, who were apparently very confident at the halfway point.

well, shit, they SHOULD be. that jammer hurt stu more in the two-minute start than he’d ever inflicted upon another jammer. she was super fast. 

and, okay, he had to admit that he thought he could beat her at first. she didn’t appear to be wearing any protection but the required stuff, and she barely had any visible muscle. but damn, she could probably kill him if she wanted to.

the game started back up again. he was flung at their jammer, upper lip crusty from the drying blood. just as quickly, a blocker got to him and shoved him down, hard. 

he could’ve sworn he saw stars for a second, that he heard the cartoon birds chirping around his head. but his teammates assured him that nothing of the sort happened, he just face-planted and skinned his elbow. he knew he should have picked up new elbow pads after breaking them last time.

he sat out for the rest of the game, letting another jammer get the spotlight for the first time since he joined the team. sweat ran down his back as he panted and wrapped gauze around his wounded elbow. 

the ghouls won in the end, with a score of sixty to twenty. 

he felt like crap. 

after games, after parties were held. nothing fancy, of course. just a bunch of college kids drinking in whoever’s basement they decided to go to until everyone was either passed out or on their way home.

while stu was trying to sip cheap red wine out of a plastic cup through a busted lip he wasn’t aware he had, the jammer that kicked his ass and the blocker that did the same walked up to him.

“hey,” the jammer said, sticking out her hand. “i’m noodle.”

stu took her hand and shook it, wincing when he straightened his elbow. noodle laughed.

“oh man, did russ do that?” she asked. “apologize, russel!” she jokingly demanded, turning towards the blocker. he shot her a grin. stu noticed that there were some gaps where teeth should have been.

“what’s your name?” he asked, looking at the injured man.

“stu,” he replied. his tone was only a little bitter. “you’re good,” he mentioned as an afterthought. “i’m just angry because this is the first time another team’s jammer has been better than me.” 

“i’m flattered,” noodle said. “but for the record, you really gave me a run for my money. you’re fast.” stu smiled up at the pair.

“thanks.”

——————————

noodle suggested that they go get dinner, even though it was a good hour past midnight and the only place open for miles was mcdonald’s. stu happily agreed, though, because he didn’t hate these two as much as he thought, and he was starving.

they made small talk over french fries and milkshakes. stu was a music major, he used to be in a band but he and his partner had... “issues.” noodle was only a freshman, and even then she skipped the eighth grade so she was much younger than stu. russel was, surprisingly, a botany major.

“really?” stu asked, shocked. “didn’t pin you as a plant guy.”

“yeah, well, there’s more to me than being a kickass blocker,” he said, flashing that stupidly charming grin again. stu sipped his milkshake.

“so, whats the deal with you two?” he asked, gesturing to the pair. “you guys a thing?”

the two stared at each other, then burst into a fit of giggles. noodle made a fake gagging noise.

“no! no, we, uh. we’re just friends,” she said. “also, i’m, like, super gay and also way too young for him.” 

“oh! you’re gay?” he asked. “i mean, y’know. i’m gay too. so, uh. cool.” russ picked a fry out of the tray at the center of the table.

“you got a boyfriend?” he asked casually. stu’s face fell.

“no, uh. not anymore.” noodle blinked at him, obviously wanting to hear more. he smiled sheepishly. “well, we... or he, i guess.” he struggled with his words. “he was an ass. still is, i guess. he slept around a lot and, you know.. he could get pretty nasty sometimes.” 

“how so?” noodle pried.

“uhh... let’s just say that i was used to getting beat up when i joined derby,” he said. russ nodded grimly.

“that sucks, man,” he said. “i’m glad you’re not with him anymore.”

“yeah,” stu said, brightening a bit. “i’m actually doing good right now. without him.” he sipped his shake again. “why do you ask?”

“because i’m bi,” russel said. “and i think you’re really cute.”

——————————

somehow, he ended up in russel’s car, still sipping the now warm wine supplied to him at the “rink.” he was just a little tipsy, enough to make him feel light and happy.

“-a dorm?” russel ended. stu looked at him with soft eyes. 

“wha?” he asked. russel chuckled.

“a dorm, do you have a dorm? an apartment where i can take you?” stu yawned and stretched.

“no, i, uh. i sleep in my car,” he said. russel’s brow furrowed.

“i’ll take you to my place,” he said. “it’s not much, but i have some stuff to clean up your injuries. you can crash on the couch?” he offered.

“no, you don’t have to do that,” he said, sitting up straight. “i can pick up some rubbing alcohol or something at the store.”

“nope.”

“but-“

“i said no,” russ said, ending the tiff.

“...okay.”

——————————

it never really “started.” well, it kind of did. at this point stu can’t decide if it started that night russel cleaned up his scrapes, the time stu showed up to his house drunk and asking to be cuddled, or the first time russ called him “baby.” all that you need to know is that something between them was there.

russ was a really good friend/boyfriend/crush. he was always there to hug stu after a particularly bad day, or to talk him out of calling murdoc, or even just to watch tv with.

they didn’t really become physically close with each other until the day russ came out to him- well, for the second time at least.

they were at his apartment, watching saturday cartoon re-runs in favor of going to class, when stu leaned onto his shoulder. russ stiffened, which caused the blue haired man to look at him quizzically.

“is something the matter?” he asked. russ smiled tightly.

“no, it’s nothing, don’t worry.” stu frowned.

“it’s okay if something is,” he assured him. “you can tell me.”

russ inhaled shakily. he sighed deeply. okay, that’s called stage one hyperventilating, actually.

“woah, hey, what’s up?” stu asked. russ shook his head.

“i just..” he groaned. “i can’t tell you.” stu blinked.

“did you hurt you shoulder during a match or somethin?” 

“no.”

“are you too hot?”

“no.”

“then what is it?” 

“i’m just.. i’m wearing.. something under my shirt, and i don’t want you to feel it,” he choked out. 

“...well what is it? you can tell me.” 

“it’s a chest binder.” stu made a confused face, which made russ laugh a little bit. “it’s something that people where to conceal.. er... their chests.” 

“...oh.” russ nodded. “you’re trans?”

“yeah,” he said. stu smiled.

“cool,” he said, grinning.

after that conversation, stu couldn’t help but worry. he kept laying his palm over russel’s belly to make sure he was breathing right, jumping every time he coughed.

“i’m okay,” russ mumbled, looking down at stu. “you don’t have to worry about me, i do this all the time.” stu shrugged.

“i just don’t want you to be hurt,” he said. russ quirked an eyebrow.

“we dirty fight wearing roller blades while people make bets on the winning team for a living.” 

“i know.” stu stared up at him. “you sure you’re okay?” he asked.

russel leaned down to press a soft kiss to his mouth. long enough to make stu’s heart flutter until he thought he might die- or at least pass out; but soft enough so as not to shock him too much.

“i’m perfect.”

——————————

russ shows up to his matches even when he’s not playing, and stu does the same for him. one night he smiles at russ in the small audience and- BOOM.

he takes an elbow to the lip and face plants onto the hard concrete. someone’s pushing through the blockers to get to him. he recognizes the wild violet hair and sadistic grin.

“noodle?” he asked.

“yeah, dude.” she winced as he allowed himself to slump over her shoulder. “yikes. that’s a lot of blood.” 

russel is in front of him, panicking at the way he’s fading in and out of the world. his eyes roll back and russ puts his hand behind his neck to stop him from falling again.

“can you spit for me, stu?” he asks, holding a cup under his chin. stu spits, and two teeth roll into the cup. he gags, shudders, and passes out.

when he wakes up, his lips are bruised and one of his eyes is swollen and dark. he runs his tongue over the space where his front teeth should be and is met with soft gums. he’s in a room he doesn’t recognize.

“where am i?” he asks out loud.

“my place,” noodle announces from the door frame. “pretty sick, right?” 

he looks around the small room. it doesn’t take much for him to realize it’s a dorm. band posters and dark lights are strung up on the walls, and it smells pretty strongly of pot.

“yeah,” he agreed. “it’s sick alright.”

he sits up and his head swims. noodle races over to him and grabs a glass of water from her nightstand. stu groans.

“jesus christ,” he says. his eyes widen. “do i have a lisp?!” 

“yeeeep,” noodle says, grinning. 

“ugh. this sucks.” noodle shrugs. “where’s russ?”

“he ran to the store to grab some painkillers.” stu shook his head.

“i can’t take painkillers,” he said. “i’ve only been sober for, like, three months.” 

“that’s okay. i’m sure he’s just gonna want to do gross romantic stuff when he sees you’re awake.” she makes a face. “are you guys gonna spoon?” stu smiled goofily.

“yeah, maybe.” noddle fake-gagged. 

“you’re gonna be the worst couple EVER!” she exclaimed. “i’m gonna have to stop hanging out with you two if you start calling each other cutesy nicknames and stuff.” 

“he calls me baby,” stu said.

“okay, i’m out,” noodle said, turning on her heel. “i’ll text russ and tell him to get something other than pain pills, ‘kay?” 

“thanks, nu.” 

“‘course.”

——————————

stu’s 90% sure he failed most of his finals, but he doesn’t care because it’s summer and he can spend all day with russ and they can go on ice cream dates and to the movies and noodle can complain when they kiss and then all three of them can go to the beach together and it will be lovely.

also, he’s heard the summer derby matches are way more fun than derby matches when school is in session, because there’s more people available. they can do tag teams and maybe he and russ could actually work together during a match for once.

he grins as he pedals his lousy beat-up bicycle to russel’s place just thinking of the possibilities.

“2D?” someone calls out. stu freezes. no one calls him that except for...

“murdoc?” 

he stops his bike and turns to face his ex boyfriend. the tall man gives a frighteningly friendly smile.

“hey! how have you been?”

“fine,” stu says with a cold tone.

“jesus, what happened to your teeth? you sound like a damn child.” stu shakes his head.

“leave me alone, murdoc.” 

“come on, 2d, don’t you miss me?” stu faces him completely. head on. he’s strong now, and he’s happy, and his head is clear enough to see murdoc for what he really is for the first time- a coward.

“no. i don’t,” he spat. “now if you’ll excuse me, i’m going to my boyfriend’s house. 

and with that, he pedaled away.

——————————

things were great. stu and russ were always covered in bruises from their matches, but it was okay because it felt amazing and they ended each game with a kiss, no matter how bad it hurt.

“don’t go soft on me, babe,” stu would say before a jam. russ would raise an eyebrow at him.

“you know i won’t.”

and the whistle will blow.


End file.
